Aphrodite
According to the ancient Greeks, Aphrodite was a beautiful, youthful goddess, associated with the attributes of love and life (Schefold 15). Between the 6th century B.C. and the 1st century A.D., she was frequently used as a subject matter in Greek and Hellenistic art. During that period, goddesses related to Aphrodite were often seen in Near Eastern art as well. In fact, Aphrodite's origins can be found in the goddess Astarte, who was worshipped by the Phoenicians. The Assyrians, who controlled the Near East up to the end of the seventh century B.C., worshipped a goddess named Ishtar who was similar in many ways to Aphrodite. The Babylonians adapted Ishtar to their pantheon and, like the Assyrians, considered her to be not only the goddess of love and life, but also of warfare (Ghirshman 393). The Persians, who took control of the region in 539 B.C., had a goddess named Anahita. This goddess, like Ishtar, held dominion over love and fertility. Furthermore, Anahita, like Ishtar, not only "ensured the continuity of life" but "was at the same time a goddess of war" (Ghirshman 250). This paradox of a goddess ruling warfare as well as love and life was found among the Greeks as well. Thus, statues of Aphrodite were often wo
Janson, H. W. History of Art. 4th ed. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1991. Prior to about the 4th century B.C., the Greek depictions of Aphrodite were generally restrained in the typical Near Eastern manner. An example of this can be seen in a stone statue from about 650 B.C., in which the goddess is shown in simple, conical shapes (Honour and Fleming 98). Her pose is extremely stiff and rigid, and her arms are held down straight by her side. A Greek vase from about the same time shows Aphrodite in two-dimensional profile (Schefold 31). Again, the pose is somewhat stiff and unrealistic. The Aphrodite Urania (from the 5th century B.C.) is representative of the way the goddess was depicted in Greece prior to the 4th century. In contrast to the later humanism of the nude female form, this depiction gives the goddess "a quality of super-human dignity" (Langlotz 646). Nevertheless, the basic pose of the Aphrodite Urania was imitated in various ways by later Greek sculptors. This can especially be seen in the way the goddess has one foot forward and slightly raised. According to Langlotz, "even the beautiful body and movement of the Venus de Milo depend upon the Urania, although they follow the formal laws of a later period" (646). Parrot, Andre. Nineveh and Babylon. Stuart Gilbert and James Emmons, trans. London: Thames and Hudson, 1961. Although there are few Near Eastern parallels to Praxiteles in terms of nude or naturalistic poses, the depictions of the goddess in that region nonetheless show certain similarities in terms of gesture. One common theme in both Greek and Near Eastern portrayals of the goddess is the gesture of "offering the breasts." In this gesture, the goddess cups her breasts with her hands, as if offering them "to the world in a timeless sacred gesture, a reminder to all that it is through the breast that life is nurtured" (Getty 38). Various Greek statues of the goddess show this gesture (Getty 70). In addition, small cylindrical statues of goddesses have been found in Persia which show them "holding up their bare breasts" (Ghirshman 47). Although the Near Eastern depictions are less detailed and less refined than the Greek examples, this nurturing gesture appears to be a common artistic theme in both places. In the Near East, there was even a funeral sarcophagus depicting Astarte with this gesture. This was meant to symbolize the goddess' ability to nourish the soul after death, "and to reaffirm that death as well as life is under the protection of the Goddess" (Getty 70). Another common gesture in both Greek and Near Eastern art is that which is known as the "pudica" or "modesty" pose. Particularly found among nude depictions of the goddess, this gesture shows "one hand covering the breasts and the other concealing the lower body" (Ghirshman 403). The presumed positioning of the arms in the Aphrodite of Cnidus, for example, comes close to showing this gesture (Honour and Fleming 112). A later model, known as the Capitoline Aphrodite, shows this gesture more explicitly. Honour and Fleming note that this gesture emphasizes the natural beauty of the love goddess. Thus, the so-called "Pudic Venus" was "a figure whose erotic attraction was ... enhanced by her modest gesture" (Honour and Fleming 112). In the few nude femal
Some common words found in the essay are:
Near Eastern, Aphrodite Cnidus, Near East, Honour Fleming, BC Aphrodite, Aphrodite Urania, Aphrodite Babylonians, Aphrodite Assyrian, Anahita Ishtar, Greeks Aphrodite, near eastern, honour fleming, aphrodite cnidus, near east, century bc, near eastern art, love life, depictions goddess, eastern art, greek near, nude female, greek near eastern, honour fleming 112, venus de milo, london thames hudson,
Approximate Word count = 2225
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)
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